Luminous performances lift heavy-metal Pelléas

By Carla Escoda, 18 March 2018

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“Lusty baritone Purves limned Golaud’s emotional swings with compelling clarity”

Reviewed at Hong Kong Cultural Centre: Grand Theatre, Hong Kong on 15 March 2018

Debussy, Pelléas et Mélisande

Welsh National Opera

Lothar Koenigs, Conductor

Sir David Pountney, Director

Johan Engels, Set Designer

Marie-Jeanne Lecca, Costume Designer

Jurgita Adamonytė, Mélisande

Jacques Imbrailo, Pelléas

Christopher Purves, Golaud

Alfred Reiter, Arkel

Leah-Marian Jones, Geneviève

Rebecca Bottone, Yniold

Die Konzertisten

Welsh National Opera Chorus

Welsh National Opera Orchestra

Welsh National Opera’s Dutchman docks in Birmingham

Rohan Shotton, 7th May

This bracing performance of The Flying Dutchman is a powerful reminder of the extraordinary musical standards which are at risk in the face of WNO’s subsidy cuts.

****1

A magnificent Tosca from Welsh National Opera at the Mayflower

David Truslove, 3rd October

WNO imports Edward Dick’s exceptionally fine production, which benefits from from superb casting and outstanding performances led by Natalya Romaniw.

*****

Bancroft and BBCNOW at the Proms: a deeply satisfying Mahler 3

David Karlin, 11th August

Bancroft and the BBC National Orchestra of Wales provide a Mahler 3 of exceptional clarity and forward momentum, with terrific posthorn solos from Corey Morris and Beth Taylor an outstanding soloist.

****1

A dark and disturbing Rigoletto from WNO at the Mayflower

David Truslove, 14th November

Fine performances in a punchy new production that coats this tragic opera in a large dollop of debauchery.

****1

WNO stages Death in Venice for the first time and it’s a triumph

Mark Valencia, 7th March

Olivia Fuchs solves the problems of Britten's thorny opera in a brilliant new production that hits the heights, featuring Mark Le Brocq as earthbound scholar, Gustav von Aschenbach.

*****

Musical performances keep WNO's new Così afloat

Mark Valencia, 6th March

Max Hoehn takes Così‘s subtitle, La scuola degli amanti (The School for Lovers), and connects it to Monty Python’s sex education sketch in The Meaning of Life. What larks, eh?

***11

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Carla Escoda

Born in the Philippines, Carla trained as a ballet and modern dancer with the Alice Reyes Dance Company in Manila. She has lived and worked in Asia and the U.S. and has written about the arts for Bachtrack, KQED (the northern California public media broadcaster), Dance International, dance journal/hk, the Huffington Post, Dance Europe and ballettothepeople.

Luminous performances lift heavy-metal staging of Pelléas et Mélisande